Fort Rock was created when magma rose to the surface and encountered the wet muds of a lake bottom. Powered by steam, molten basalt was blown into the air, creating a fountain of hot lava particles and frothy ash. The blobs of hot lava and ash rained down around the vent, cooled in the lake waters, and formed a saucer-shaped ring (tuff ring) sitting like an island in the lake waters. Native Americans once had to canoe to and from the island. This is hard to imagine in the dryness that is now this region!
Fort Rock
Fort Rock was created when magma rose to the surface and encountered the wet muds of a lake bottom. Powered by steam, molten basalt was blown into the air, creating a fountain of hot lava particles and frothy ash. The blobs of hot lava and ash rained down around the vent, cooled in the lake waters, and formed a saucer-shaped ring (tuff ring) sitting like an island in the lake waters. Native Americans once had to canoe to and from the island. This is hard to imagine in the dryness that is now this region!